But that wasn’t the case for Sicilian man, Giovanni Cucinotta, who suffered from a severe heart condition that made his life increasingly difficult.

Four years ago, Giovanni’s parents, Agatino and Domenica Cucinotta, his brother, Salvatore, and his sister, Rosa, migrated to Australia from the Sicilian town of Nizza, settling in the Melbourne suburb of Northcote.

Giovanni couldn’t go with his family at the time and was unable to follow them later on: the Department of Immigration categorically denied his entry as he had health problems and would have been an economic burden if he were treated in a public hospital.

Instead, Giovanni went to Milan and worked as a mechanic for as long as his body would allow, scraping together his savings in the hope of becoming cured and being reunited with his family in Australia.

He began visiting hospitals, private clinics and cardiologists all over the country.

“Everyone told me – either abruptly or in a diplomatic manner – that they couldn’t help me,” Giovanni recalled bitterly.

“They said that surgery would be too risky or that I didn’t have enough money to cover the costs of the operation.

“The most promising hospital was the Niguarda in Milan, where the medical staff gave me some hope of recovering by the end of 1968.

“I felt like I was dying a little more every day; I felt abandoned and betrayed by my own country.

“I begged and pleaded with doctors and politicians but it was useless.

“I bought a racing car with the savings and, on more than one occasion, I welcomed – and almost sought after – death in crazy races from Sicily to Lombardy.”

Meanwhile, there was an unexpected breakthrough.

Giovanni’s family in Melbourne hadn’t forgotten him.

After four years of hard work and financial sacrifices, they managed to buy a house in Northcote and give authorities an assurance of support that would allow Giovanni to enter the country.

The Department’s decision was also influenced by a recommendation made by doctors at Melbourne’s St Vincent’s Hospital, who proposed the possibility of heart surgery that would replace two of Giovanni’s valves with artificial ones.

Three months ago, Giovanni arrived at the Melbourne airport looking weak and tired.

Three weeks ago, he was recovering at St Vincent’s Hospital after successfully undergoing the operation in which a plastic valve and a pig’s valve were implanted.

On Thursday, he returned home in perfect condition, ready to start learning English and make up for lost time.

“I can’t thank my new home enough for literally giving me – a foreigner – my life back without asking for anything in return,” Giovanni said.

Giovanni can now start a new life and hopes that his partner, 21-year-old Teresa Sesto, will be able to join him, and that they can get married.

“The day that happens, I’ll forget about the wounds from my past and remember only the good, and this country that welcomed me,” he concluded.

Giovanni is pictured in the above image (right) with his father following their reunion.